Your Pump Solution

for the Biogas Industry.

For a clean environment.

Biogas plants play an increasingly important role in environ-

mental protection around the world. Unlike burning fossil
energy sources such as coal, natural gas or petroleum, bio-
gas is CO 2-neutral because the carbon dioxide released in
the process is part of a natural cycle. In addition, the use of
renewable biomasses, such as energy crops, helps to save
these limited resources.

The basis for achieving the largest possible gas yield – and
therefore economic success – is efficient plant management.
Among other factors, this depends on the choice of the
equipment used: It should be reliable and easily maintained –
coupled with low energy consumption.

As a leading international provider of products and services

for pumping and treating liquids, seepex offers a wide range
of solutions to match the specific requirements of your bio-
gas plant.

The modular seepex system allows us to offer the optimal

technical and economic solution for transporting fermentation
products and conveying almost all process-related products. Each
pump is individually selected to the specific requirements
of your sector, your company, your installation location and
of course your application.

More than 600 employees around the world make sure of

this. They develop, manufacture and market your conveying
solution – whether progressive cavity pumps, macerators or
controlling systems.

No wonder the biogas industry without our pumps is

inconceivable.

We are a member of the German Biogas Association (Fachverband

Biogas e.V.) and of the ADBA, Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas
Association, Great Britain.

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seepex BN range pumps for
conveying fermented products
that can also contain solids like
shards of glass or small pieces
of plastic.

Biogas industry
Pumping of:
• Corn and corn silage
• Digestate
• Faecal sludge
• Food waste
• Liquid substrate, such as
liquid manure
• Recirculate
• Solid manure
• Waste fodder

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Biogas plant application – overview.

Schematic diagram of
a biogas process
Coferments
Control system BGDC

BN

Recirculate

Silo/collecting vessel

BTH/BTHE

BN Macerator

Liquid substrate

BN

Fermenter
(mixing tank)

Biogas

Pumps of range BN convey liquid manure, cooking oil and flotation Pumps of range BN are used for important conveying jobs, such as
sludge. pumping fermentation products from the silo.

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 BN
Digestate reservoir

Fermenter
(secondary fermentation)

Biogas
BN

Block heat and Digestate residue

power plant preparation, fertilizer

Electricity
Heat

Miscellaneous vegetable waste before conversion to biogas. Pumps of range BN combined with seepex macerators inline, convey
and homogenize various fermentation products.

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The seepex bio substrate mixing system
for fermentation product conveying.

Thoroughly mixing the solid and liquid fermentation products

before feeding them into the fermenter has two fundamental
advantages:
• larger gas yield thanks to greater bioactivity
• reduced energy consumption thanks to less stirring in
the fermenter

Our bio substrate mixing system is the ideal solution, consisting

of a sturdy feed hopper pump from product group T, a
standard BN range pump and the “Biogas Control System“ –
BGDC for short.

The feed hopper is generously proportioned. The rotating

Bio substrate mixing system,
screw mixer and conveyor ensures efficient mixing of solid consisting of seepex BTH and
fermentation products like: BN pump ranges with Smart
Conveying Technology, SCT.
• corn and corn silage
• waste fodder
• solid dung
• food waste

It also ensures good mixing of the liquid substrates added by

means of the standard pump, such as:
• liquid manure
• recirculate
• faecal sludge

The prepared fermentation mass is then pumped by the feed

hopper pump to the mixing tank or directly into the fermenter.

We offer various designs of feed hopper pumps matched to

the properties of the fermentation products being conveyed.
In particular, the BTH range pump is already used success-
fully in many biogas plants. This special and unique seepex
development has a separately driven and reversible ribbon
screw that is decoupled from the pump train itself, achieving
the best mixing and pumping results.

The “Biogas Control System“ unit combines all the important

controller properties:
• The duration of mixing and the needs-based feeding of
the solid and liquid content can be adjusted individually.
• Optimized process settings can be saved and accessed at
any time. Benefits
• Easy to integrate into a higher-level plant control system • Increased gas yield
using flexible bus systems. • Reduced energy consumption
• Efficient plant operation thanks to optimized process
control
• Comprehensive range of feed hopper pumps –
specifically matched to your fermentation products

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Systematic flow chart of the fermentation product transportation process step

Coferments Control system BGDC

Recirculate

Silo/collecting vessel
BTH/BTHE

BN
Liquid substrate

Fermenter (secondary fermentation)

Fermenter
(mixing tank)

Biogas

seepex BTH range pumps ensure thorough mixing of the Bio substrate mixing system – pumps of range BTH and BN
fermentation products with subsequent pumping. BTH 70-12 • Conveying product: silage, fermentation product consisting of
solid dung, waste fodder • Conveying capacity: 20 m3/h (88 GPM)
Pressure: 4 bar (58 PSI) • Temperature: 20 °C (68 °F)
BN 35-6L • Conveying product: Liquid manure • Conveying capacity: 16 m3/h
(70 GPM) • Pressure: 1 bar (14.5 PSI) • Temperature: 20 °C (68 °F)

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Innovative – Smart Conveying Technology, SCT.

The seepex innovation “Smart Conveying Technology“ – SCT

for short – is an essential component of the seepex bio sub-
strate mixing system. It has been tried and tested thousands
of times in solutions for a wide range of conveying tasks.
The advantages of this intelligent, patented technology over
standard progressive cavity pumps or rotary lobe pumps
become apparent in biogas plants, in particular. Examples
include the area of fermentation product and re-circulate
conveying.

Necessary maintenance work on the rotor and stator can be

carried out with minimal effort and in the shortest of time,
thanks to ingenious design principles – meaning that down-
time is kept to a minimum. The pump remains in its place
during servicing and the connected pipelines do not have to
“Smart Conveying Technology“
be removed. makes replacing the rotor and
stator up to 85 % faster.

The integrated retensioning device means that the stator‘s

service life can be increased by up to 30 % and the rotor‘s
life by up to 50 %.

All these advantages lead to reduced life cycle costs and

greater productivity and economic efficiency for your biogas Benefits
plant. • Longer durability for rotor and stator thanks to integrated
retensioning device
• Extremely easy maintenance due to fast assembly/
dismantling of rotor and stator
• High productivity due to short maintenance downtimes
• Small space requirement as no space needs to be
included for removing the stator
• Easy handling during maintenance due to low-weight
components

Pump of range BT 130-6LS Pumps of range BN 17-6LS and BN 70-6L

Conveying product: Food waste BN 17-6LS • Conveying product: Faecal sludge • Conveying capacity:
Conveying capacity: 40 m3/h (176 GPM) • Pressure: 3 bar (43 PSI) 8.5 m 3/h (37 GPM) • Pressure: 2 bar (29 PSI) • Temperature: 5 – 40 °C
Temperature: 5 – 40 °C (41 – 104 °F) (41 – 104 °F)
BN 70-6L • Conveying product: Faecal sludge • Conveying capacity:
60 m3/h (264 GPM) • Pressure: 2 bar (29 PSI) • Temperature: 5 – 40 °C
(41 – 104 °F)
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Pumping solutions for food waste.

Due to its relatively large energy content, waste from the

food industry is increasingly being fermented in biogas
plants. This includes:
• food scraps, production residues, rejected batches,
excess production
• expired goods such as cooking fats and oils
• dairy waste, baked goods
• abattoir waste or food by-products
• fryer residues
• fruit and vegetable waste
• grains

However, the use of this waste should not have a negative

seepex BTM range pumps convey
effect on either the biogas process or the agricultural use of and chop in a single step.
fermentation residue. In this context, it is important to mac-
erate or homogenize the waste. It is also advisable to trans-
port the waste in a closed system to avoid unpleasant odors.

Thanks to their specific characteristics, our products are

ideally placed to fulfil these requirements. The BTM range
pump with an integrated cutting unit that we developed and
patented is the only one of its kind on the market. It chops
and pumps in a single step. Even large-sized conveying Benefits
products such as whole pieces of fruit or perished poultry • Saving on investment costs
can be processed. No additional grinder is needed, leading • Positive effect on the biogas process thanks to material
to a significant reduction in investment costs. maceration and homogenization
• Pumping in a closed system to avoid unpleasant odours
In addition to this, we offer macerators that chop waste into • BTM range pump – chops and pumps in a single step
particularly small pieces, thereby homogenizing it.

Pump of range BN 17-6L and macerator 25I Pump of range BTM 17-12
Conveying product: Miscellaneous food waste Conveying product: Food waste
Conveying capacity: 8 m 3/h (35 GPM) • Pressure: 1.5 bar (21 PSI) Conveying capacity: 3.6 m3/h (16 GPM) • Pressure: 2 bar (29 PSI)
Temperature: 20 °C (68 °F) Temperature: 5 – 40 °C (41 – 104 °F)

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Your pump solutions at a glance.

seepex pumps gently transport low to highly viscous products

with or without solids, as well as low or high-temperature
products with low pulsations or low shear action. They also
feature excellent metering precision.

Pumps from the BN range are used in almost all industrial Range BN with Smart Conveying Technology
sectors. They convey low to high viscosity materials with or
without solids with a ds content of up to 15 %. They are
also used for conveying liquid manure and recirculate.

> Conveying capacity: 30 l/h – 500 m 3/h

(0.13 – 2,200 GPM), Pressure: up to 48 bar (720 PSI)

BTH range pumps feature a separately driven, concentrically Range BTH/BTHE

rotating ribbon screw with a maximized diameter and long
pitch. Through separate control of the conveying screw
speed, the BTH pump can be used for almost any conveying
media. The variable speed auger permits optimum filling with
the solid fermentation products. Even media that tend to
form bridges can be handled with ease due to the large
screw diameter of the BTH pump.

Combined with BN range pumps and the control system

BGDC, the BTH is a basic component of the bio substrate
mixing system.

> Conveying capacity: 0.5 m 3/h – 130 m 3/h

(2.2 – 572 GPM), Pressure: up to 36 bar (540 PSI)

A special characteristic of the BTM range is the patented Range BTM

macerator integrated into the compression zone. The knives
on the rotating conveying screw chop the fed products in
combination with the cutting tools fastened in the compres-
sion housing. Integrated into a closed system the pump
permits macerating of fruit, vegetables or abattoir waste,
for example, with subsequent pumping.

> Conveying capacity: 0.25 m³/h – 130 m³/h

(0.22 – 2,200 GPM), Pressure: up to 36 bar (540 PSI)

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Factors such as dosing liquids and solids and mixing these Control system BGDC
materials are important process parameters that need to
be adjusted individually. Optimized process settings need
to be saved and accessed at any time. All these important
characteristics are included in the seepex BGDC control
system. It is an basic component of our bio substrate mixing
system.

Macerators from seepex reduce the size of solids and fibers Range I
in the pumped medium. In biogas plants, this leads to further
maceration or homogenization of the fermentation products.
seepex macerators are available as inline designs with inte-
grated solid separators and universal versions for direct
installation in a pipeline or with a supply container with a
direct connection to a seepex pump.

> Flow rate: up to 150 m 3/h (660 GPM)

See our “Product groups and ranges“ brochure for further

solutions for a wide range of applications.

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And what can we get flowing for you? Your nearest contact:
BIO 6.11E

Or visit www.seepex.com